Seems like you have an initial three way choice to make:
- Navy or Air Force Academy: Positives on flight hours, training, skills. Priced right as well
- University with Professional Pilot/Aviation degree: (e.g. ASU; OSU; Embry-Riddle) Don't know of any in California
- General Education University
For me, if I wanted to be a professional pilot, I'd focus on either the AF Academy or Embry-Riddle type universities. The right focus, building flight hours, the right social circle/networking. RE Navy vs AF, let's see, be on a ship for 6 months with a bunch of men, or be posted on an air conditioned AF base in Europe, Asia, etc?
As far as General Ed Universities are concerned, once you can get into a certain tier of school (top UC, Ivy, etc.), the reasons to choose are: Major Subject; Networking; Lifestyle. Having graduated from two UC Schools, I'm highly biased to UCLA, Berkeley, Davis and UCSD. They offer a significant bang for your buck and if you align the school with your major, you can't beat the quality of education. That being said, the networking and school pride from USC (did I mention I hate USC) are significant, but centered in the LA area.
I think it is very wise to have a degree in something you enjoy and to give yourself something to fall back upon. Engineering or Business would be typical choices. But at a top-level University, you are not learning a trade, you are learning to think - a way to process information and make informed decisions. When hiring, especially out of school, everything else being equal I'd rather get someone with a liberal arts degree from UCLA than a business degree from No Name College.
Sounds like you've got the grades and scores to get in where you want - so go visit some colleges. Some will feel awkward, some will feel right.
(As an aside, you are certainly ahead of the game from where I was at your age. I picked UC Davis because I drove by it every weekend on my way up to Tahoe. Figured it would enable day skiing (cut class a bunch to do that). By pure serendipity my ultimate major (Physiology) was #1/#2 in the nation. But it's where I met my wife - she went to Davis also because it is two hours from Tahoe. Later in life when I picked a school for my MBA, the reputation and network became much more important than location.
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Good Luck!